Declutter or Downsize? A Quick Guide
It’s winter in New England and many of us are spending more and more time stuck inside. Although the holidays and playoff football provide a pleasant distraction from our cabin fever, there is something all around us that we can’t ignore…clutter!
For many New England families, winter is a time to hunker down and deal with all the clutter that has been accumulating through the year…or through the decades! Studies have shown [health.usnews.com/wellness/mind/articles/2016-11-08/why-decluttering-is-good-for-your-healthlink] that aside from the obvious benefit of having more space, people who routinely de-clutter have improved mental well-being and relationships.
It makes sense! An organized and de-cluttered house is a happy house! All of us have some degree of clutter in our home, but for some tackling decades of stuff can be an intimidating and overwhelming task. It can be hard to even know where to begin!
To make things just a bit easier, here are 5 tips for de-cluttering your home from our Pioneer experts. Be sure to check out bonus tip #6; perhaps de-cluttering doesn’t make sense for you in your current space and DOWNSIZING is the solution to your clutter worries.
1. The 365 Method
Colleen Madsen at 365 Less Things [365lessthings.com] suggests giving away or discarding one item a day for a year. This is somewhat of a slow-drip method that works if your level of clutter is not too severe. Of course, if you want to de-clutter faster, or have a bigger pile of stuff to deal with, you can modify this approach. For example, donate 5 things a day for a month, or discard 1 garbage bag load of stuff per week etc. The idea here is to assign a number to your task in order to make it more manageable. Madsen’s blog gives daily ideas for what to give away/discard and how to do it.
2. Four Box Method
The Four-Box Method comes to us from Joshua Becker at the becoming minimalist blog [becomingminimalist.com]. The idea is simple: for every room in the house, have four boxes ready, one each for throw-away, give-away, keep, or relocate. With this approach each room or area can ideally be done in a day without being too overwhelming. It is easy for kids to get involved in this process too, as the method creates clear categories that children can identify with.
3. Finding a Home
Ideally every item in your house should have a home. One major reason people resist organizing their home is that when they look at a big pile of stuff they simply don’t know where to put it all. Taking some time to go through things according to category rather than by room can help resolve this. Face it, sometimes we have clothes in the garage, tools in the living room, and toys in the kitchen! Most of the time we can’t remember how any of the stuff got there. Group items by category and decide as a family where its home will be. Then label it…
4. Label, Label, Label
Once a home is found for your different categories of stuff (see item #3), labeling can make a big difference when it comes to keeping stuff in their proper place. This is especially true if you have children and a house full of toys. Have you ever looked closely at a preschool or kindergarten classroom? Everything is labeled! Blocks go here, books go over there, paintbrushes go in here etc. A big reason children resist cleaning up is the same reason we adults resist de-cluttering—the task looks insurmountable! But by designating a home and a label for things, even those action figures and dolls will be put away and out of sight.
5. The 100 Thing Challenge
Maybe you are read to meet your clutter head-on with a bit more of a challenge. Minimalist living guru Dave Bruno [davidmichaelbruno.com] brings us the 100 thing challenge. Can you reduce your worldly possessions down to 100 things? Well, Dave and many readers of his blog are giving it a shot. By reducing our stuff to 100, we are forced to distinguish between items that really mean something to us and stuff that is just…well…stuff.
6. Downsizing
The situations described here deal with de-cluttering and organizing that result from the normal accumulation of stuff from our day-to-day lives and circumstances. But perhaps your situation is different.
Maybe health or personal issues have prevented you from taking time to organize or clean your home. Maybe your stuff is associated with memories or a time in your life that you are not prepared to face. Or perhaps the amount of stuff involved simply cannot be dealt with by one person and a team is needed. In cases like these, professional help is often highly recommended. But this comes at a cost.
Professional organizers charge $50-$100 per hour. Movers or clean-out teams can charge $5000+ per project. A dumpster rents for $500. The average cost of a storage unit is $150 per month. Is it really worth it?
If you find yourself in a situation like this, have you considered DOWNSIZING? Downsizing can be a relief from the stresses of a large home and all of the messes, headaches, and yes, clutter, that come along with it.
If you decide to sell your cluttered house, be sure to use a reputable real estate investment team like Pioneer Property Group. Why?
1. Leave your clutter behind!
Traditional realtors will need to stage your house for prospective buyers, leaving you with the cost of clean up. Not Pioneer. We buy your house AS-IS. Simply pack up the things you truly want to keep and leave the rest behind, we’ll take care of it at no cost to you!
2. We close on YOUR timeline.
Perhaps you want to sell but would like a more time to go through your stuff a bit more carefully. No problem! We close on the date of YOUR choice with no pressure.
3. No Fees or Commissions
A severely cluttered house may have structural or other issues that have been covered up by piles of stuff for years. Traditional realtors may charge heavy inspection fees, or have inspection contingencies that will delay your sale. Not Pioneer. We close with no fees, commissions, or inspection contingencies.
With the right team on your side, the inspiration to de-clutter can lead to a happier, lighter, and stress-free living situation through downsizing. With Pioneer, it’s simple...
To speak with one of our property-selling specialists, call 617-575-7188
